Emigrant Sailings Across the Alantic Around the Year 1840

EMIGRANT SAILINGS ACROSS T HE
ATLANTIC AROUND THE Y E A R 1840
AXEL FRIMAN
A number of old emigrant letters1 have revealed informa­tion
about three early sailings across the Atlantic with emi­grants
from Sweden, namely from Göteborg to New York
1838, from New York to Göteborg 1839, and from Göteborg to
Boston 1842.
Sailing on the Swedish brig R o s e n — Captain Kollenius
— in 1838 were the former clerk in the Royal Skaraborg
regiment, Carl Friman and his five sons2 — all minors —
from Göteborg May 3, arriving in New York July 9. In
September the same year they founded the first Swedish
settlement in Wisconsin.
A year later, in 1839, the father because of i l l health re­turned
to Sweden together with his next to the youngest son,
Herman, on the Swedish brig S v e a — Captain J . E . Nissen
— sailing from New Y o r k about June 20, arriving in Göte­borg
about August 10. The son Herman, however, though
only thirteen years old, i n 1842 made his third Atlantic
crossing, sailing from Göteborg July 1 on the American brig
S a m o s — Captain Reed — and landing in Boston on August
16.
The Maritime Museum in Göteborg, in answer to an i n ­quiry
about the above-named vessels and their skippers,
gave some interesting bits of information. Among these was
'Axel Friman, "The Growth of an 'America Letters' collection,"
T h e S w e d i s h P i o n e e r H i s t o r i c a l Q u a r t e r l y , XIX, Pp. 158-161.
2 Nils William Olsson, S w e d i s h P a s s e n g e r A r r i v a l s i n N e w Y o rk
1 8 2 0 - 1 8 5 0 (Stockholm and Chicago, 1967), p. 26.
141
a reference to a dedicatory poem honoring Capt. Nissen, and
the information that the brig S v e a was a so-called "Bethel
Ship." Ship captains who had been designated "Bethel
Skippers" were required, when their vessels were in port,
to have religious services on board on Sundays and holidays,
not only for their own crews but also for the crews of other
Swedish vessels in port at the time and, by invitation, for
countrymen on land in the vicinity. These so-called "Bethel
Ships" carried their own flag: a white sheet with blue and
yellow borders and in the center field the "Allseeing Eye"
in a triangle.
The verses in honor of Capt. Nissen were found i n a manu­script
outline of a lecture, among papers donated to the
Museum and having belonged to the shipping news editor
Fritz Scheel (1878-1950) of Göteborg. Since Scheel had for
a long time been associated with G H T , 3 and the content of
the manuscript indicated that it most likely could be dated
within the first half of the 1840s, one ought to be able to
find it printed in some issue of G H T of that time. And, to
be sure, in one issue4 were found excerpts of the lecture
mentioned as well as the dedicatory poem. G H T was at that
time more than now the medium for trade and shipping
news. Its information regarding shipping is now of much
interest to emigration researchers. A perusal of the old files
therefore continued. In searching first of all for information
about the three vessels previously mentioned, the files for
the years 1837-1843 of G H T have been examined.
How did the intended America-travelers get to know
about available ship accommodations? The answer is simple:
Exactly as today — through advertisements. Ordinarily the
same announcement was placed in several consecutive issues
of a newspaper in plenty of time before the planned sailing.
Thus one could for example already in January and February
3 G H T indicates Göteborgs H a n d e l s — o c h Sjöfartstidning; the
symbol G H T is used throughout this paper.
4 G H T , 21 Oct. 1843 (no. 122).
142
read in G H T under the heading "Ship Accommodations":
On the brig S v e a — Capt. J . E. Nissen — accommoda­tions
may immediately be secured for passengers to
New York. Further information may be had at the office
of J . A . Leffler.
The information about America-bound vessels in addition to
the announcements of sailings contained details about the
vessels: kind of vessel, size, name, skipper, cargo, clearance
in and out of Göteborg, positions en route with timetables,
difficulties because of bad weather, and i n extreme cases —
about founderings.
It is surprising that one may so readily follow the vessels'
routes and experiences when we realize that at that time
there were none of the means of distance communications for
reporting positions. Possibilities consisted of direct observa­tions
in ports or from places and route concentrations the
vessels passed or from meeting vessels on the open sea.
Observations were thus reported to the home port either
by mail or orally by homeward bound ship commanders.
Such communications relating to Göteborg were then pub­lished
in G H T . The activity of certain vessels can thus —
almost continuously — be determined year after year. The
brig S v e a is a good example of this.
In winter when sailings were discontinued — a situation
which we in our day seldom think about — maritime reports
were few yet quite interesting. The report5 of " i n the harbor
of Goteborg, winter-idle vessels which are not engaged in
loading cargo" indicates the extent of this and the number
of different types of vessels. During the winter of 1838-39
the winter-idle vessels numbered about sixty, namely thirteen
brigs, twenty-four schooners, ten barques, eight ships, three
steamships, and three sloops.
Ordinarily there is found also, at the beginning of each year,
a comprehensive report on the past year's shipping. Regard-
5 G H T Jan. 28, '39 (no. 12)
143
ing the movement of ships i n the years 1838-1841, the follow­ing
table shows figures of shipping to and from the port of
Göteborg:
1838 1839 1840 1841
Vessels cleared
from foreign ports 802 709 ? ?
Vessels cleared
to foreign ports (total) 723 665 803 731
Of these, to No. America 49 44 31 40
Total Swedish vessels
Of these, to No. America
209
12
230
11
233
12
226
12 6
It is probably unwarranted to read into this limited report
any definite tendencies. Perhaps one may see in it a slow
decline i n the total number of vessels going from Göteborg to
North America. Note particularly the low figure of 31 for 1840
when the total number of out clearanced vessels reach the top
record of 803, while the number of Swedish vessels is nearly
static at 12 per year. Almost without exception each vessel
was able to make one round trip journey each sailing season.
To the extent time permitted, in cases where the American
trip had been completed rapidly and without accidents, it
was usual for those vessels to make shorter additional sail­ings,
for example to Bergen, Norway, for a cargo of herring;
to Cadiz with timber and logs; to St. Yves to fetch some
hundred m o y 1 of salt and perhaps some tens of tankards of
grapes. Sometimes on the way home from the USA, stop­overs
were made in Liverpool or Hamburg. Once in a while
the America-boats whose home port was Göteborg went up
into the Baltic Sea for a final unloading in Stockholm. It
also happened that on the return trip to Göteborg, intending
emigrants were picked up, for instance, in Stockholm and
6 G H T Feb. 4, '39 (no. 15); Feb. 17, '40 (no. 13, 19); Feb. 8, '41 (no.
16); Feb. 7, '42 (Nos. 5, 16).
7 M o y [moyo~\ was a Portuguese measure for salt equaling, accord­ing
to an 1843 report, 5V2 Swedish t u n n o r ; reckoning the t u n na
(cask) at 146.5 liters this meant that a m o y o amounted to 810 liters.
144
Copenhagen-Malmo, before they finally sailed from Göteborg
for the long journey to the USA.
The capacity of the vessels on the route Göteborg-North
America seems to have varied considerably. Of the 44 vessels
of the year 1839, the largest was an American vessel of 414
tester, while the smallest was a Norwegian of only two tester.
The previously mentioned brig S v e a , contracted of oak and
fir timbers, with a capacity of 128 tester, had flag number 52
in the Goteborg Seamen's Guild.8
The appearance of the brig S v e a may have been approxi­mately
as follows:9 Having a double deck lengthwise, the
upper part astern was raised to a long half-deck. The area on
the middle deck between the two masts was probably used as
cantonment for the passengers, and the ship's hold under it
for the passengers' baggage and private supply of provisions.
Some measurements were: length over the stem, about 98
feet; width of timbers, about 26% feet; middle deck, about 6
feet; ship's hold, about 10 feet; and the passengers' canton­ment
area, about 40 x 22 x 6 feet.
Before the passenger traffic had really gotten under way,
the main purpose of the freight traffic to North America was
the transportation of Swedish iron, even if S v e a , under Capt.
Nissen, cleared on June 14, 1843, for sailing to New York,
had a cargo, besides the America-passengers, of 1000 leeches
( b l o d i g l a r ) !1 0 The vessels we are concerned with transported
about 2000 s k e p p u n d (about 275 tons) iron each trip. In 1841
8 O. M. Dreutzer, Sjömannasällskapets k a l e n d e r (Göteborg, 1838).
Svår läst or läst (pl. läster) was term used in regulations of 1776
for expressing a ship's capacity in terms of displacement under full
load. One svår läst was 18 s k e p p u n d , or 2,448 kilograms (reckoning
the skeppund at 137 kg.). This system was replaced in 1863 by decimal
measurement, in tons. According to this modern method the American
ship referred to was a little more than 1000 tons, the small Norwegian
ship was about five tons, and the brig Svea was in between at 320
tons.
9O. M. Dreutzer, Sjömannasällskapets K a l e n d e r (Goteborg, 1838).
Information kindly supplied by Vice-Admiral Gunnar Jedeur-Palm¬
gren, Onsala.
10 G H T June 19,1843 (no. 70)
145
the freight charge was six dollars per ton.1 1 Reports on prices
and sale of Swedish iron in the U S A were constantly pub­lished
i n G H T . The price of iron during the years under
consideration varied between 80 and 100 dollars per ton.
On the return sailings from America the vessels carried
quite a variety of goods. In first place was the importation
of cotton, tobacco and dyestuffs. Further, there was rum, wine
and tar, but also coffee, cocoa and sugar, pepper and ginger.
Pelts are also mentioned quite often. Sometimes even raw
meats are listed, and finally resin and varnish.
Gradually the passenger traffic increased and more efforts
were made to book as many passengers as possible for each
sailing. The brig C h a r l o t t e (140 läster) in 1846 carried 150
of the adherents of Erik Jansson.1 2 The hold of the C h a r l o t t e
measured 21 x 12 x 3 alnar. Since one aln equals barely two
feet, the hold of the C h a r l o t t e was approximately the same
as that of the previously described S v e a . For the mentioned
1846 sailing it was arranged to provide sleeping places a l l
around the hold by nailing up two rows of bunks, thirty in
all, each seven feet in width, each to accommodate five per­sons.
One may imagine what a pigsty it would become during
the trip, especially in bad weather.
Assuming that the S v e a was a genuine brig and not a
schooner-brig or brigantine, the round hull consisted of bow­sprit,
foremast and mainmast. The masts were trisected and
sail-rigging was undoubtedly made up of two or three head-sails
on the bowsprit, four square-sails on the foremast, and
four square-sails and one fore- and aft-sail (spanker) on the
mainmast. In addition studding sails could be carried and
staysails. The form of the hold of the vessel was probably
relatively short but of good freight capacity. The stem was
rounded and the upper part of the stern (transom) flat or
round. Surrounding it was the boardwalk, and at that time
» G H T April 10, 1841 (no. 42)
1 2 Hj. Börjeson, S t o c k h o l m s Segelsjöfart (Stockholm 1932), p. 388;
Nils William Olsson, o p . c i t . , pp. 86-98.
146
it was usually adorned with "Nelson-paintings" on the sides
and a galleon figure on the forestem.13
With such a capricious transportation method as sailing
it is natural that the time for crossing the ocean varied
considerably. Seven crossings westward and five eastward
during the years under consideration, including, of course,
the sailings of R o s e n , S v e a and S a m o s , have been checked for
time. The length of time for the crossing is indicated in the
following table:
N u m b e r of i days
Westbound Eastbound
Average 58 63
Fastest crossing 42 41
Slowest crossing 71 90
The average time of crossing indicates that the voyage west­ward
went faster, taking hardly two months, while the return
to Sweden took almost a week longer time. It was thus more
difficult to get back to Europe and at its worst it took three
months — about one-half longer than the average.
Naturally it was not always the lack of favorable wind
that delayed the voyages across the Atlantic. Just as often
surely it was contrary winds and storms that affected sail
navigation, and made voyages far from being without risk for
the early emigrants. Reports of damaging accidents and
founderings came often to the editors of G H T . During the
first half of December, 1839, a violent storm evidently raged
in the west Atlantic. A report from London expressed great
concern for the steamship T h e B r i t i s h Q u e e n , which having
departed from New York had not yet arrived in London.
Four days later, however, one could breathe easier when
the ship, having been delayed by storms, finally arrived in
London after 23 days at sea.14
1 3 Information from Vice-Admiral Jedeur-Palmgren.
1 4 GHT Jan. 4, 1840 (no. 1), Jan. 8, 1840 (no. 2)
147
On the coast near Boston this storm seems to have raged
at its worst. From there a report dated Dec. 15, 1839, gave
this information:
A terrific eastern storm — The Swedish brig P r e c i o s a
heading for Baltimore has returned without masts. Of
60 vessels lying in the outer harbour, 21 had been driven
against the coast, all except one wrecked; of 21 at anchor
in the harbour, 14 have lost their masts.15
The brig R o s e n , which in May-June, 1838, had carried the
Friman group of emigrants to the New World, was apparently
lost two years later. On Saturday Dec. 12, 1840, a cryptic
statement appeared in G H T : "The brig R o s e n is lost." The
statement was based on a communication from Capt. Meerc¬
ken, skipper on the vessel J P Cape which arrived i n Phila­delphia
Nov. 5. The captain reported:
On Oct. 27 we sighted a vessel without masts display­ing
distress signals. A t two o'clock the same day we
learned that the vessel was R o s e n — Z. Kollenius — en
route from Göteborg to Philadelphia, 43 days under
way. The sea ran so high we could not reach the vessel,
and the brig would not risk its boats. Capt. Kollenius
asked that I remain in the vicinity until the weather
calmed down. This I did for 19 hours. The wind was a
strong N to ANNE. I was then able to take aboard ten
men of the crew; the ship's carpenter had been killed
when the mast was cut down. Capt. Ellenius was cer­tain
the brig would sink since it was leaking quite
badly.1 6
Since it has not now been possible to get additional informa­tion
about R o s e n ' s subsequent fate, we can neither confirm
nor contradict the fulfillment of the captain's gloomy pre­diction.
The story of the event, however, gives further evi­dence
of the risks encountered at that time of trying to
realize "the dream of America."
15 G H T Jan. 29, 1840 (no. 5, 11)
16 GAT Dec. 12, 1840 (no. 137, 143)
148
In spite of the dangers involved in the voyages and the
miserable conditions on board during the crossing, passengers
were many and the competition among the vessels is indicated
by increasing and more developed advertising. Capt. Nissen
of the S v e a had, during the years 1837 - 1843, more than
others used G H T to spread knowledge about, and recruit
passengers for his annual America journeys. The series of
advertisements found in GHT for the year 1843 may have
been unrivalled at the time as to frequency, form and extent.
Beginning already on Jan. 28, under the heading "Shipping
Accommodations" the following notice appears:
Since already a large group of passengers have regis­tered
their desire to travel to North America with the
undersigned on the well known fast-sailing brig S v e a , I
intend to leave this coming spring, providing a sufficient
number of persons sign up. In the meantime those inter­ested
may write for information about rates to the
undersigned, whose address is Göteborg. — Göteborg
Jan. 28, 1843. — J . E. Nissen (354).17
In the middle of March, Capt. Nissen published the follow­ing:
Announcement. — Passengers who intend to travel
with the undersigned on the brig S v e a to New York in
America are hereby notified that I will immediately sail
from here [Göteborg] to Stockholm, and that during the
coming month of May I will return to Göteborg for the
out-going journey. Passengers may embark in Stockholm
as well as here. Those who wish to accompany us should
pay in advance (and receive a receipt for) one-fourth of
the agreed-upon passage fee, payable either to the ship­ping
agents Eggert Nauclair & Son, Stockholm, or to F. &
H. G. Wessberg, Göteborg, who will also in the mean­time
give any desired information. I may at that time
be able with certainty to determine whether all who
have registered will be accommodated or not. — Göte­borg,
March 17, 1843. — J . E . Nissen. (1096)18
« G H T , no. 12-17 and 19-25, 1843
18 G H T , nos. 33-34, 1843.
149
According to a "Shipping Notice" in G H T the S v e a passed
through Öresund on A p r i l 15, with a good wind, on its way to
Stockholm.
Wessman, Capt. Nissen's agent in Göteborg, as noted above,
continued the advertising campaign. In the middle of May
he published the following:
Accommodations for New York — Those who intend
to go to New Y o r k on the brig S v e a — Capt. J . E . Nissen
— are hereby notified that the mentioned Captain w i ll
come here from Stockholm by the middle of this month
to receive those passengers who intend to embark here.
A doctor will board the vessel for the trip. Further
information may be had from the undersigned. — Göte­borg,
May 8, 1843. — F. & H . G. Wessberg. (1932)19
According to the Stockholm "Maritime Notices" S v e a was
out-clearanced from Stockholm May 20 carrying a "miscellan­eous"
cargo,20 and undoubtedly it sailed shortly thereafter.
A couple of days later a notice from Stockholm was published
about S v e a ' s departure:
The brig S v e a under command of Capt. Nissen today
at nine o'clock a.m. sailed from here with 19 persons of
different occupations who are emigrants to the USA. The
vessel will stop at Göteborg where a large number of
emigrants — reported to number 40 or 50 persons —
has assembled to participate in the journey. Also from
Denmark w i l l come 6 or 7 additional passengers. Having
been renovated especially to accommodate passengers the
vessel seems to be quite comfortable, and its commander
is known to be exceptionally well qualified. The crossing
is expected to take two months. Ticket prices are: 140
R k s . first class, 120 second, and 106 R k s . 52 S k . on third
class. A doctor accompanies.21
On June 7 or shortly before, the S v e a arrived at Göteborg
from Stockholm and the same day the final announcement
of the departure was published:
19 G H T nos. 55-58 and 60, 1843
20 G H T May 27, 1843 (no. 61)
21 G H T May 29, 1843 (no. 62)
150
Announcement — Since the brig S v e a — Capt. J . E.
Nissen — has now arrived, persons who wish to engage
passage as passengers for New Y o r k on this vessel are
advised to apply immediately at the office of the under­signed
or on board the vessel anchored off the "Cliff." —
Göteborg, June 7, 1843. — F . & H . G. Wessberg. (2373).22
A week later, or June 14, S v e a was cleared for the journey
to America, where she arrived on August 15.23 The passage
was thus made in almost exactly two months as promised by
Capt. Nissen. On Sept. 8 the S v e a returned from New Y o rk
to Göteborg, where she arrived just prior to Oct. 18 with a
cargo of 415 bales of cotton, 60 barrels of resin, 34 casks of
tobacco, 25 barrels of flour, and dyestuffs.24
Capt. Nissen did not lose any time. Already near the end
of November he started the advertising campaign for the 1844
sailing for North America:
Ship Accommodations for New York. — Since a large
number of persons have already indicated their desire
to travel with me to North America next spring, I wish
to announce that I intend to sail, the same as last spring,
at the beginning of the month of April, with emigrants
for New York. The vessel is remarkably fast-sailing and
comfortably arranged for emigrants. Food may be ob­tained
aboard during the trip. Further information may
be had from the local shipping agents F. & H . G . Wess­berg
or from the undersigned whose address is Göteborg.
— Göteborg, Nov. 25,1843. — Joh. E. Nissen. (4951)25
When departing from Sweden by water from Göteborg,
the last landmark to which one may wave farewell — and
conversely the first one sees rising up from the sea on re­turning
to Sweden — is Vinga Beacon. This is now consid­ered,
as it has been for many, many years, a recognized
symbol. But in spite of this the lighthouse has not always
been there. In a notice in G H T one may read:
2* GHT June 7, 1843 (no. 65)
23 G H T Sept. 20, 1843 (no. 109); Olsson, Op. cit, 46-53.
2 4 GHT Oct. 14, 1843 (no. 119), Oct. 18, 1843 (no. 121).
a GHT nos. 138-145, 1843.
151
The petition by the Merchantman Commanders to the
Department of Commerce and their letter to the Chief of
the Pilots' District have now advanced so far that His
Royal Majesty has appropriated 8000 R k s . for the con­struction
of a lighthouse at Vinga.2 6
Ever since this decision was made and the construction com­pleted,
the beacon at Vinga has facilitated navigation to and
from Göteborg. Similarly it has guided the increasingly rapid
stream of emigrants from Göteborg to the Promised Land in
the West.
26 G H T March 12, 1838 (nos. 27, 29)
152

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EMIGRANT SAILINGS ACROSS T HE
ATLANTIC AROUND THE Y E A R 1840
AXEL FRIMAN
A number of old emigrant letters1 have revealed informa­tion
about three early sailings across the Atlantic with emi­grants
from Sweden, namely from Göteborg to New York
1838, from New York to Göteborg 1839, and from Göteborg to
Boston 1842.
Sailing on the Swedish brig R o s e n — Captain Kollenius
— in 1838 were the former clerk in the Royal Skaraborg
regiment, Carl Friman and his five sons2 — all minors —
from Göteborg May 3, arriving in New York July 9. In
September the same year they founded the first Swedish
settlement in Wisconsin.
A year later, in 1839, the father because of i l l health re­turned
to Sweden together with his next to the youngest son,
Herman, on the Swedish brig S v e a — Captain J . E . Nissen
— sailing from New Y o r k about June 20, arriving in Göte­borg
about August 10. The son Herman, however, though
only thirteen years old, i n 1842 made his third Atlantic
crossing, sailing from Göteborg July 1 on the American brig
S a m o s — Captain Reed — and landing in Boston on August
16.
The Maritime Museum in Göteborg, in answer to an i n ­quiry
about the above-named vessels and their skippers,
gave some interesting bits of information. Among these was
'Axel Friman, "The Growth of an 'America Letters' collection,"
T h e S w e d i s h P i o n e e r H i s t o r i c a l Q u a r t e r l y , XIX, Pp. 158-161.
2 Nils William Olsson, S w e d i s h P a s s e n g e r A r r i v a l s i n N e w Y o rk
1 8 2 0 - 1 8 5 0 (Stockholm and Chicago, 1967), p. 26.
141
a reference to a dedicatory poem honoring Capt. Nissen, and
the information that the brig S v e a was a so-called "Bethel
Ship." Ship captains who had been designated "Bethel
Skippers" were required, when their vessels were in port,
to have religious services on board on Sundays and holidays,
not only for their own crews but also for the crews of other
Swedish vessels in port at the time and, by invitation, for
countrymen on land in the vicinity. These so-called "Bethel
Ships" carried their own flag: a white sheet with blue and
yellow borders and in the center field the "Allseeing Eye"
in a triangle.
The verses in honor of Capt. Nissen were found i n a manu­script
outline of a lecture, among papers donated to the
Museum and having belonged to the shipping news editor
Fritz Scheel (1878-1950) of Göteborg. Since Scheel had for
a long time been associated with G H T , 3 and the content of
the manuscript indicated that it most likely could be dated
within the first half of the 1840s, one ought to be able to
find it printed in some issue of G H T of that time. And, to
be sure, in one issue4 were found excerpts of the lecture
mentioned as well as the dedicatory poem. G H T was at that
time more than now the medium for trade and shipping
news. Its information regarding shipping is now of much
interest to emigration researchers. A perusal of the old files
therefore continued. In searching first of all for information
about the three vessels previously mentioned, the files for
the years 1837-1843 of G H T have been examined.
How did the intended America-travelers get to know
about available ship accommodations? The answer is simple:
Exactly as today — through advertisements. Ordinarily the
same announcement was placed in several consecutive issues
of a newspaper in plenty of time before the planned sailing.
Thus one could for example already in January and February
3 G H T indicates Göteborgs H a n d e l s — o c h Sjöfartstidning; the
symbol G H T is used throughout this paper.
4 G H T , 21 Oct. 1843 (no. 122).
142
read in G H T under the heading "Ship Accommodations":
On the brig S v e a — Capt. J . E. Nissen — accommoda­tions
may immediately be secured for passengers to
New York. Further information may be had at the office
of J . A . Leffler.
The information about America-bound vessels in addition to
the announcements of sailings contained details about the
vessels: kind of vessel, size, name, skipper, cargo, clearance
in and out of Göteborg, positions en route with timetables,
difficulties because of bad weather, and i n extreme cases —
about founderings.
It is surprising that one may so readily follow the vessels'
routes and experiences when we realize that at that time
there were none of the means of distance communications for
reporting positions. Possibilities consisted of direct observa­tions
in ports or from places and route concentrations the
vessels passed or from meeting vessels on the open sea.
Observations were thus reported to the home port either
by mail or orally by homeward bound ship commanders.
Such communications relating to Göteborg were then pub­lished
in G H T . The activity of certain vessels can thus —
almost continuously — be determined year after year. The
brig S v e a is a good example of this.
In winter when sailings were discontinued — a situation
which we in our day seldom think about — maritime reports
were few yet quite interesting. The report5 of " i n the harbor
of Goteborg, winter-idle vessels which are not engaged in
loading cargo" indicates the extent of this and the number
of different types of vessels. During the winter of 1838-39
the winter-idle vessels numbered about sixty, namely thirteen
brigs, twenty-four schooners, ten barques, eight ships, three
steamships, and three sloops.
Ordinarily there is found also, at the beginning of each year,
a comprehensive report on the past year's shipping. Regard-
5 G H T Jan. 28, '39 (no. 12)
143
ing the movement of ships i n the years 1838-1841, the follow­ing
table shows figures of shipping to and from the port of
Göteborg:
1838 1839 1840 1841
Vessels cleared
from foreign ports 802 709 ? ?
Vessels cleared
to foreign ports (total) 723 665 803 731
Of these, to No. America 49 44 31 40
Total Swedish vessels
Of these, to No. America
209
12
230
11
233
12
226
12 6
It is probably unwarranted to read into this limited report
any definite tendencies. Perhaps one may see in it a slow
decline i n the total number of vessels going from Göteborg to
North America. Note particularly the low figure of 31 for 1840
when the total number of out clearanced vessels reach the top
record of 803, while the number of Swedish vessels is nearly
static at 12 per year. Almost without exception each vessel
was able to make one round trip journey each sailing season.
To the extent time permitted, in cases where the American
trip had been completed rapidly and without accidents, it
was usual for those vessels to make shorter additional sail­ings,
for example to Bergen, Norway, for a cargo of herring;
to Cadiz with timber and logs; to St. Yves to fetch some
hundred m o y 1 of salt and perhaps some tens of tankards of
grapes. Sometimes on the way home from the USA, stop­overs
were made in Liverpool or Hamburg. Once in a while
the America-boats whose home port was Göteborg went up
into the Baltic Sea for a final unloading in Stockholm. It
also happened that on the return trip to Göteborg, intending
emigrants were picked up, for instance, in Stockholm and
6 G H T Feb. 4, '39 (no. 15); Feb. 17, '40 (no. 13, 19); Feb. 8, '41 (no.
16); Feb. 7, '42 (Nos. 5, 16).
7 M o y [moyo~\ was a Portuguese measure for salt equaling, accord­ing
to an 1843 report, 5V2 Swedish t u n n o r ; reckoning the t u n na
(cask) at 146.5 liters this meant that a m o y o amounted to 810 liters.
144
Copenhagen-Malmo, before they finally sailed from Göteborg
for the long journey to the USA.
The capacity of the vessels on the route Göteborg-North
America seems to have varied considerably. Of the 44 vessels
of the year 1839, the largest was an American vessel of 414
tester, while the smallest was a Norwegian of only two tester.
The previously mentioned brig S v e a , contracted of oak and
fir timbers, with a capacity of 128 tester, had flag number 52
in the Goteborg Seamen's Guild.8
The appearance of the brig S v e a may have been approxi­mately
as follows:9 Having a double deck lengthwise, the
upper part astern was raised to a long half-deck. The area on
the middle deck between the two masts was probably used as
cantonment for the passengers, and the ship's hold under it
for the passengers' baggage and private supply of provisions.
Some measurements were: length over the stem, about 98
feet; width of timbers, about 26% feet; middle deck, about 6
feet; ship's hold, about 10 feet; and the passengers' canton­ment
area, about 40 x 22 x 6 feet.
Before the passenger traffic had really gotten under way,
the main purpose of the freight traffic to North America was
the transportation of Swedish iron, even if S v e a , under Capt.
Nissen, cleared on June 14, 1843, for sailing to New York,
had a cargo, besides the America-passengers, of 1000 leeches
( b l o d i g l a r ) !1 0 The vessels we are concerned with transported
about 2000 s k e p p u n d (about 275 tons) iron each trip. In 1841
8 O. M. Dreutzer, Sjömannasällskapets k a l e n d e r (Göteborg, 1838).
Svår läst or läst (pl. läster) was term used in regulations of 1776
for expressing a ship's capacity in terms of displacement under full
load. One svår läst was 18 s k e p p u n d , or 2,448 kilograms (reckoning
the skeppund at 137 kg.). This system was replaced in 1863 by decimal
measurement, in tons. According to this modern method the American
ship referred to was a little more than 1000 tons, the small Norwegian
ship was about five tons, and the brig Svea was in between at 320
tons.
9O. M. Dreutzer, Sjömannasällskapets K a l e n d e r (Goteborg, 1838).
Information kindly supplied by Vice-Admiral Gunnar Jedeur-Palm¬
gren, Onsala.
10 G H T June 19,1843 (no. 70)
145
the freight charge was six dollars per ton.1 1 Reports on prices
and sale of Swedish iron in the U S A were constantly pub­lished
i n G H T . The price of iron during the years under
consideration varied between 80 and 100 dollars per ton.
On the return sailings from America the vessels carried
quite a variety of goods. In first place was the importation
of cotton, tobacco and dyestuffs. Further, there was rum, wine
and tar, but also coffee, cocoa and sugar, pepper and ginger.
Pelts are also mentioned quite often. Sometimes even raw
meats are listed, and finally resin and varnish.
Gradually the passenger traffic increased and more efforts
were made to book as many passengers as possible for each
sailing. The brig C h a r l o t t e (140 läster) in 1846 carried 150
of the adherents of Erik Jansson.1 2 The hold of the C h a r l o t t e
measured 21 x 12 x 3 alnar. Since one aln equals barely two
feet, the hold of the C h a r l o t t e was approximately the same
as that of the previously described S v e a . For the mentioned
1846 sailing it was arranged to provide sleeping places a l l
around the hold by nailing up two rows of bunks, thirty in
all, each seven feet in width, each to accommodate five per­sons.
One may imagine what a pigsty it would become during
the trip, especially in bad weather.
Assuming that the S v e a was a genuine brig and not a
schooner-brig or brigantine, the round hull consisted of bow­sprit,
foremast and mainmast. The masts were trisected and
sail-rigging was undoubtedly made up of two or three head-sails
on the bowsprit, four square-sails on the foremast, and
four square-sails and one fore- and aft-sail (spanker) on the
mainmast. In addition studding sails could be carried and
staysails. The form of the hold of the vessel was probably
relatively short but of good freight capacity. The stem was
rounded and the upper part of the stern (transom) flat or
round. Surrounding it was the boardwalk, and at that time
» G H T April 10, 1841 (no. 42)
1 2 Hj. Börjeson, S t o c k h o l m s Segelsjöfart (Stockholm 1932), p. 388;
Nils William Olsson, o p . c i t . , pp. 86-98.
146
it was usually adorned with "Nelson-paintings" on the sides
and a galleon figure on the forestem.13
With such a capricious transportation method as sailing
it is natural that the time for crossing the ocean varied
considerably. Seven crossings westward and five eastward
during the years under consideration, including, of course,
the sailings of R o s e n , S v e a and S a m o s , have been checked for
time. The length of time for the crossing is indicated in the
following table:
N u m b e r of i days
Westbound Eastbound
Average 58 63
Fastest crossing 42 41
Slowest crossing 71 90
The average time of crossing indicates that the voyage west­ward
went faster, taking hardly two months, while the return
to Sweden took almost a week longer time. It was thus more
difficult to get back to Europe and at its worst it took three
months — about one-half longer than the average.
Naturally it was not always the lack of favorable wind
that delayed the voyages across the Atlantic. Just as often
surely it was contrary winds and storms that affected sail
navigation, and made voyages far from being without risk for
the early emigrants. Reports of damaging accidents and
founderings came often to the editors of G H T . During the
first half of December, 1839, a violent storm evidently raged
in the west Atlantic. A report from London expressed great
concern for the steamship T h e B r i t i s h Q u e e n , which having
departed from New York had not yet arrived in London.
Four days later, however, one could breathe easier when
the ship, having been delayed by storms, finally arrived in
London after 23 days at sea.14
1 3 Information from Vice-Admiral Jedeur-Palmgren.
1 4 GHT Jan. 4, 1840 (no. 1), Jan. 8, 1840 (no. 2)
147
On the coast near Boston this storm seems to have raged
at its worst. From there a report dated Dec. 15, 1839, gave
this information:
A terrific eastern storm — The Swedish brig P r e c i o s a
heading for Baltimore has returned without masts. Of
60 vessels lying in the outer harbour, 21 had been driven
against the coast, all except one wrecked; of 21 at anchor
in the harbour, 14 have lost their masts.15
The brig R o s e n , which in May-June, 1838, had carried the
Friman group of emigrants to the New World, was apparently
lost two years later. On Saturday Dec. 12, 1840, a cryptic
statement appeared in G H T : "The brig R o s e n is lost." The
statement was based on a communication from Capt. Meerc¬
ken, skipper on the vessel J P Cape which arrived i n Phila­delphia
Nov. 5. The captain reported:
On Oct. 27 we sighted a vessel without masts display­ing
distress signals. A t two o'clock the same day we
learned that the vessel was R o s e n — Z. Kollenius — en
route from Göteborg to Philadelphia, 43 days under
way. The sea ran so high we could not reach the vessel,
and the brig would not risk its boats. Capt. Kollenius
asked that I remain in the vicinity until the weather
calmed down. This I did for 19 hours. The wind was a
strong N to ANNE. I was then able to take aboard ten
men of the crew; the ship's carpenter had been killed
when the mast was cut down. Capt. Ellenius was cer­tain
the brig would sink since it was leaking quite
badly.1 6
Since it has not now been possible to get additional informa­tion
about R o s e n ' s subsequent fate, we can neither confirm
nor contradict the fulfillment of the captain's gloomy pre­diction.
The story of the event, however, gives further evi­dence
of the risks encountered at that time of trying to
realize "the dream of America."
15 G H T Jan. 29, 1840 (no. 5, 11)
16 GAT Dec. 12, 1840 (no. 137, 143)
148
In spite of the dangers involved in the voyages and the
miserable conditions on board during the crossing, passengers
were many and the competition among the vessels is indicated
by increasing and more developed advertising. Capt. Nissen
of the S v e a had, during the years 1837 - 1843, more than
others used G H T to spread knowledge about, and recruit
passengers for his annual America journeys. The series of
advertisements found in GHT for the year 1843 may have
been unrivalled at the time as to frequency, form and extent.
Beginning already on Jan. 28, under the heading "Shipping
Accommodations" the following notice appears:
Since already a large group of passengers have regis­tered
their desire to travel to North America with the
undersigned on the well known fast-sailing brig S v e a , I
intend to leave this coming spring, providing a sufficient
number of persons sign up. In the meantime those inter­ested
may write for information about rates to the
undersigned, whose address is Göteborg. — Göteborg
Jan. 28, 1843. — J . E. Nissen (354).17
In the middle of March, Capt. Nissen published the follow­ing:
Announcement. — Passengers who intend to travel
with the undersigned on the brig S v e a to New York in
America are hereby notified that I will immediately sail
from here [Göteborg] to Stockholm, and that during the
coming month of May I will return to Göteborg for the
out-going journey. Passengers may embark in Stockholm
as well as here. Those who wish to accompany us should
pay in advance (and receive a receipt for) one-fourth of
the agreed-upon passage fee, payable either to the ship­ping
agents Eggert Nauclair & Son, Stockholm, or to F. &
H. G. Wessberg, Göteborg, who will also in the mean­time
give any desired information. I may at that time
be able with certainty to determine whether all who
have registered will be accommodated or not. — Göte­borg,
March 17, 1843. — J . E . Nissen. (1096)18
« G H T , no. 12-17 and 19-25, 1843
18 G H T , nos. 33-34, 1843.
149
According to a "Shipping Notice" in G H T the S v e a passed
through Öresund on A p r i l 15, with a good wind, on its way to
Stockholm.
Wessman, Capt. Nissen's agent in Göteborg, as noted above,
continued the advertising campaign. In the middle of May
he published the following:
Accommodations for New York — Those who intend
to go to New Y o r k on the brig S v e a — Capt. J . E . Nissen
— are hereby notified that the mentioned Captain w i ll
come here from Stockholm by the middle of this month
to receive those passengers who intend to embark here.
A doctor will board the vessel for the trip. Further
information may be had from the undersigned. — Göte­borg,
May 8, 1843. — F. & H . G. Wessberg. (1932)19
According to the Stockholm "Maritime Notices" S v e a was
out-clearanced from Stockholm May 20 carrying a "miscellan­eous"
cargo,20 and undoubtedly it sailed shortly thereafter.
A couple of days later a notice from Stockholm was published
about S v e a ' s departure:
The brig S v e a under command of Capt. Nissen today
at nine o'clock a.m. sailed from here with 19 persons of
different occupations who are emigrants to the USA. The
vessel will stop at Göteborg where a large number of
emigrants — reported to number 40 or 50 persons —
has assembled to participate in the journey. Also from
Denmark w i l l come 6 or 7 additional passengers. Having
been renovated especially to accommodate passengers the
vessel seems to be quite comfortable, and its commander
is known to be exceptionally well qualified. The crossing
is expected to take two months. Ticket prices are: 140
R k s . first class, 120 second, and 106 R k s . 52 S k . on third
class. A doctor accompanies.21
On June 7 or shortly before, the S v e a arrived at Göteborg
from Stockholm and the same day the final announcement
of the departure was published:
19 G H T nos. 55-58 and 60, 1843
20 G H T May 27, 1843 (no. 61)
21 G H T May 29, 1843 (no. 62)
150
Announcement — Since the brig S v e a — Capt. J . E.
Nissen — has now arrived, persons who wish to engage
passage as passengers for New Y o r k on this vessel are
advised to apply immediately at the office of the under­signed
or on board the vessel anchored off the "Cliff." —
Göteborg, June 7, 1843. — F . & H . G. Wessberg. (2373).22
A week later, or June 14, S v e a was cleared for the journey
to America, where she arrived on August 15.23 The passage
was thus made in almost exactly two months as promised by
Capt. Nissen. On Sept. 8 the S v e a returned from New Y o rk
to Göteborg, where she arrived just prior to Oct. 18 with a
cargo of 415 bales of cotton, 60 barrels of resin, 34 casks of
tobacco, 25 barrels of flour, and dyestuffs.24
Capt. Nissen did not lose any time. Already near the end
of November he started the advertising campaign for the 1844
sailing for North America:
Ship Accommodations for New York. — Since a large
number of persons have already indicated their desire
to travel with me to North America next spring, I wish
to announce that I intend to sail, the same as last spring,
at the beginning of the month of April, with emigrants
for New York. The vessel is remarkably fast-sailing and
comfortably arranged for emigrants. Food may be ob­tained
aboard during the trip. Further information may
be had from the local shipping agents F. & H . G . Wess­berg
or from the undersigned whose address is Göteborg.
— Göteborg, Nov. 25,1843. — Joh. E. Nissen. (4951)25
When departing from Sweden by water from Göteborg,
the last landmark to which one may wave farewell — and
conversely the first one sees rising up from the sea on re­turning
to Sweden — is Vinga Beacon. This is now consid­ered,
as it has been for many, many years, a recognized
symbol. But in spite of this the lighthouse has not always
been there. In a notice in G H T one may read:
2* GHT June 7, 1843 (no. 65)
23 G H T Sept. 20, 1843 (no. 109); Olsson, Op. cit, 46-53.
2 4 GHT Oct. 14, 1843 (no. 119), Oct. 18, 1843 (no. 121).
a GHT nos. 138-145, 1843.
151
The petition by the Merchantman Commanders to the
Department of Commerce and their letter to the Chief of
the Pilots' District have now advanced so far that His
Royal Majesty has appropriated 8000 R k s . for the con­struction
of a lighthouse at Vinga.2 6
Ever since this decision was made and the construction com­pleted,
the beacon at Vinga has facilitated navigation to and
from Göteborg. Similarly it has guided the increasingly rapid
stream of emigrants from Göteborg to the Promised Land in
the West.
26 G H T March 12, 1838 (nos. 27, 29)
152